The present invention relates to a tool used for the alignment of a door in a vehicle.
In my prior U.S. Pat. No. 5,331,837 of Jul. 26, 1994, entitled “VEHICLE DOOR ALIGNMENT DEVICE”, I have disclosed in some detail the problems involved in the alignment of a door in a motor vehicle by applying force to the door until an area at or near the door hinge is bent and the door is aligned. I have shown, particularly in FIG. 3 of that patent, a lever-type device having a part engaging the door latch and which is provided with a plate rotatably adjustable thereon so as to be moveable into engagement with the end surface of the door, thereby to clamp the lever to the door. That plate is coated with or formed by a material such as rubber or plastic that will not scratch the paint of the door or otherwise damage the door edge surface or anything which may be applied to that surface, such as vehicle identifications numbers or computerized bar codes, which are today normally glued or otherwise applied to the door edge surface. The space available to gain access to that plate and rotate it into position is quite often exceedingly restricted, making it difficult properly to secure the lever to the door or to retract the plate once alignment is completed in order to conveniently disengage the lever from the door. Moreover, the fact that that plate must be rotated into engagement with the door surface is in itself a source of trouble, because of the attendant rubbing and scraping on the door surface, as well as causing excessive wear on the protective rubber or plastic surface of the plate itself.